Scientists, psychologists and English academics at Liverpool University have found that reading the works of the classical writers like Shakespeare and Wordsworth has a great effect on the mind, catches the reader’s attention and triggers moments of self-examination.
Using a special machine, they monitored the brain activity of 30 volunteers as they read works by William Shakespeare, William Wordsworth, T.S. Eliot and others.
In the first part of the research, the brain activity of 30 volunteers was monitored as they read passages from Shakespeare’s plays, including King Lear, Othello, Coriolanus and Macbeth, and again as they read the text rewritten in a simpler form or modern language.
While reading the common texts, normal levels of electrical activity were shown in their brains. When they read the works of Shakespeare, however, the levels of activity jumped because of his use of words which were unfamiliar to them. The result of the test showed that the more challenging passages cause a greater degree of electrical activity in the brain than the common ones.
Scientists went on to study the brain activity as it responded to each word and recorded how it lit up as the readers came across unusual words, surprising phrases or difficult sentences in the classical works. As a result, this lightening up process of the mind lasted longer than that when volunteers read common texts, encouraging further reading.
The research also found that reading poetry especially increases activity in the right hemisphere(半球) of the brain, an area connected with “autobiographical memory”, driving the readers to think carefully about their own experiences based on what they have read. The academics said this meant the classical works of literature are more useful than self-help books.
Philip Davis, an English professor who has worked on the study in the university’s magnetic resonance center, announced this week: “Classical literature acts like a rocket-booster（火箭加速器） to the brain, which provides extra power for the brain. You may never imagine how powerful it is. The research shows such kind of literature can create new thoughts and connections in the young and the old.”
1.The underlined word “trigger” in Paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to “______”.
A.depends on B.picks up
C.sets off D.changes into
2.Which of the following is NOT true about reading classical literature?
A.It makes readers’ brain more active than reading common texts.
B.It makes readers’ electrical activity of brain return to normal.
C.It’s helpful for readers to come up with new ideas.
D.It’s an activity that is suitable for people of all ages.
3.From the research, we can learn that ______.
A.the readers prefer Shakespeare’s works to the other writers’ works
B.the words of classical works make it hard for volunteers to read further
C.reading classical works produces a good and long-lasting effect on the mind
D.poetry increases left-brain activity more than other literary forms
4.What does the author mainly tell us in this passage?
A.Shakespeare’s plays deserve to be read.
B.Common books are unpopular anymore.
C.Poetry is best for developing people’s brain.
D.Classical works help the brain develop better.
In colleges around the country, most students are also workers.
The reality of college can be pretty different from the images presented in movies and television. Instead of the students who wake up late, party all the time, and study only before exams, many colleges are full of students with pressing schedules of not just classes and activities, but real jobs, too.
This isn’t a temporary phenomenon. The share of working students has been on the rise since the 1970s, and one-fifth of students work year round. About one-quarter of those who work while attending school have both a full-course load and a full-time job. The arrangement can help pay for tuition (学费) and living costs, obviously. And there’s value in it beyond the direct cause: such jobs can also be critical for developing important professional and social skills that make it easier to land a job after graduation. With many employers looking for students with already-developed skill sets, on-the-job training while in college can be the best way to ensure a job later on.
But it’s not all upside. Even full-time work may not completely cover the cost of tuition and living expenses. The study notes that if a student worked a full-time job at the federal minimum wage, they would earn just over $15,000 each year, certainly not enough to pay for tuition, room, and board at many colleges without some serious financial aid. That means that though they’re sacrificing time away from the classroom, many working students will still graduate with at least some debt. And working full time can reduce the chance that students will graduate at all, by cutting into the time available for studying and attending classes.
There is little reward for attending but not finishing college. Students who end up leaving school because of difficulty in managing work and class are likely to find themselves stuck in some of the same jobs they might have gotten if they hadn’t gone at all. The difficulty of working too much while in school can create a cycle that pushes students further into debt without receiving any of the financial or career benefits.
1.According to the passage, the reality of college students is that ________.
A. they throw parties a lot B. they stay up late every night
C. they work besides attending classes D. they pay no attention to exams
2.What is the indirect cause of an increasing number of working students?
A. The need of developing social networks.
B. The lack of summer jobs for young adults.
C. The chance of finding a job after graduation.
D. The expenses of high tuition and living costs.
3.We can learn from the passage that _________.
A. working students are more likely to finish college
B. students can cover their college expenses through working
C. students receive a huge reward for managing work and class
D. working while attending school may not help students get career benefits
4.What is the best title for the passage?
A. The Difficulties of Landing a Job
B. The Struggle of Work-School Balance
C. The Reward of Working While Studying
D. The Images of Working College Students
The morning after an evening struggle to care for my three-year-old daughter, I couldn’t wait to get her to school. I, as a mother, was tired from the anger and her inability to communicate because of her slowed language development.
As I accompanied her into the car, I felt desperate. Nothing was right with our world. She’d been born around the same time when the nation was witnessing the birth of another Great Recession. My job and my house had been victims. Then this happened. My child’s language delay was identified, but doctors struggled to properly help her, I felt like we both needed to he rescued.
I returned that afternoon as disenchanted with the little girl I loved as when I left. Walking slowly toward the school’s playground gate, I found her preschool teacher racing to greet me.
“You should have seen her today!” His breathy words were supported by excitement. I didn’t interrupt. “See that climber. ” He pointed to a wooden piece of playground equipment that looked like a rock wall. I nodded. “Well, every day since she started school, she’s tried and failed to make it to the top. ” He took a breath. “And today she did it!”
He expressed his joy just as he’d witnessed her conquering Mount Everest! “She cheered and celebrated! I wish I’d recorded it!” His words comforted me. My daughter had conquered her mountain.
As she ran toward me, I recognized something I hadn’t before. I saw her perseverance(毅力). I saw her strength. I saw a Hero.
Everyday greatness celebrates ordinary people who do unusual things in big and small ways, showing courage, kindness, love and selflessness. We encourage you to click these brief accounts and invite you to share your own story.
1.Why did the author rush her daughter to school?
A.She was busy with her work as a doctor.
B.She had a fight with her daughter last night.
C.She broke down when dealing with her daughter.
D.She had to sell their house due to Great Recession.
2.Which of the following best explains “disenchanted” underlined in paragraph 3?
A.Happy. B.Concerned.
C.Careful. D.Disappointed.
3.Why did the little girl’s preschool teacher feel excited?
A.She succeeded in standing on Mount Everest.
B.She managed to climb up the wooden equipment.
C.She got the first place in the school sports meet.
D.She began to communicate with others normally.
4.From which is the text most probably taken?
A.The radio. B.A magazine.
C.A newspaper. D.The Internet.
Smart Home Products for Living a Connected Life
What makes something a smart home product? Generally, it’s defined by its ability to connect to a Wi-Fi network, allowing users to interact（互动）with it from their smartphones.We’ve rounded up some cool, diverse offerings that you’ll love to have in your home.
Nest Cam IQ
walmart.com
$299.00
The Nest Cam IQ is a beautifully designed home security camera that can recognize faces. It can warn you if there’s a stranger in your home. The device also supports two-way communication via built-in microphones and a powerful speaker.
Logitech Harmony Elite
amazon.com
$249.99
The Logitech Harmony Elite is one of the best universal remote controls available on the market. It can control just about every piece of electronics you own（it supports over 270，000 devices！）in every room of your house or apartment, including TVs，streaming devices, and sound systems.
Apple HomePod
bhphotovideo.com
$349.00
The Apple HomePod has better audio quality than any other smart speaker available today. Available in white or space gray, the Siri-powered device also allows you to control a number of devices with your voice.
August Smart Lock Pro
amazon.com
$279.99
The August Smart Lock Pro is compatible（兼容的）with most locks. A mobile app allows you to manage access to the lock, check its usage history, and get informed when someone opens the door. You can control it and check on the state of your door with voice commands.
1.What can the Nest Cam IQ help you do？
A.Properly use your smartphone camera
B.Control electronics with your voice.
C.Check the locks of your house.
D.Keep your home safe.
2.Which device can help you operate almost all your electronic equipment remotely？
A.Nest Cam IQ.
B.Apple HomePod.
C.August Smart Lock Pro.
D.Logitech Harmony Elite.
3.Which column of a website is the text most probably taken from？
A.Technology.
B.News.
C.Society.
D.Education.
请按照下列要求，根据自己的亲身经历，用日记体裁，记述一段难忘的家庭往事。
要求：1. 日记体裁，时间自拟，星期和日期要写完整单词；
2. 记述一件发生在家庭成员之间的事件, 要有细节描写；
3. 要有自己对这件事情的看法或感受；
4. 提示：注意体裁和时态；
5. 字数：80个单词左右。
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Why do we dream? It’s a question researchers have been studying for years. Now new research suggests that some dreams may result from the brain’s effort to keep learning, even as we sleep.
In a study in Boston, 100 volunteers were trained for an hour on a maze (迷宫). They tried to find their way through the difficult puzzle as quickly as possible. Then half of the volunteers were allowed to sleep for 90 minutes. The other half stayed awake, reading or relaxing. The ones who slept were asked to describe their dreams when they woke up.
After the rest, the volunteers were asked again to solve the maze. Those who hadn’t slept showed no improvement or did even worse after the break. Sleepers who didn’t report any maze-related dreams did better but showed only a little improvement. However, 4 nap-takers who reported dreaming about maze showed a surprising improvement. They scored 10 times higher after sleeping and dreaming about the maze.
Even though the number of dreamers was small, the researchers noted that the gap in learning between the dreamers and the non-dreamers was so wide that the finding was significant.
The dreamers had all performed poorly on the test before dreaming about it. That suggests that struggling with a task might be the trigger that leads the sleeping brain to focus on it and work on how to deal with it.
“It’s almost as if your brain is going through everything that happened today,” Dr. Stickgold, a scientist at Harvard Medical School, said, “The things you are obsessed (着迷的) with are the ones that your brain forces you to continue to do with. ”
1.What’s the best title of the passage?
A.Learning while you dream. B.What dreams stand for.
C.Dream a good dream. D.Dreams and health.
2.What were the volunteers asked to do after the rest?
A.To work on a new maze.
B.To continue to do the maze.
C.To talk with each other about their dreams.
D.To tell what they thought about the maze.
3.According to the study, which group showed the greatest improvement?
A.Those who didn’t sleep.
B.Those who slept but didn’t dream.
C.Those who dreamed about the maze while sleeping.
D.Those who thought about the maze before falling asleep.
4.The underlined word “trigger” in paragraph 5 probably means ________.
A.chance B.idea
C.way D.cause
5.In which part of a newspaper would you most probably read this passage?
A.Business B.Science
C.Education D.Life
